Andrea Marcanti /Arizona Silver Belt Junior Holley Lamont weighs her options for college by checking out different recruiters.

GLOBE — Juniors and seniors from Globe, Miami and San Carlos previewed their futures during the Southern Gila County Post Secondary Education Fair on Wednesday, Nov. 4 at the Gila County Fairgrounds. Students were able to weigh their options by speaking to the 48 colleges and trade schools represented at the fair.

“Last year, of the 287 graduating seniors from our area, only 4 percent went on to ASU or U of A, which is a relatively small amount,” said Tamara Glinski, Dean of the Southern Gila County Preparatory Academy. Glinski is looking to improve these numbers by giving students a better understanding of their options.

“Of the 745 seniors and juniors, 440 students had permission slips in hand and were able to attend the fair,” said Glinski. “We handed out a list of the schools attending the fair as well as their e-mail addresses so that students could review their information before attending the fair.”

Students were expected to have a list of the colleges they wanted to visit in order to make the most out of their time. They were also told to brainstorm questions to ask recruiters, and given a list of sample questions that included admission requirements, financial aid opportunities, classroom size, housing and student life activities.

Seniors had the first chance to check out the fair. Recruiters were given lunch tickets, and were able to invite two students to continue their conversations. Seniors were also able to fill out college applications for the schools of their choice. Juniors were given the afternoon to visit college recruiters. Holley Lamont, a junior at Globe High School, got the chance to look into different colleges and ask about the programs that sparked her interest. “I’m mostly thinking of U of A but I’m looking into other colleges as well,” said Lamont. “I’d like to major in Psychology.”

Other students like Swade Roberts, a junior at Globe High School, is looking into a military career. “I’m not sure whether I want to go into the Air Force or the Navy,” said Roberts. Master Sgt. Brian Jones of the Air National Guard was on scene to help students make military decisions. “We’ve had a great turnout,” said Jones. “I’ve had to answer some pretty technical questions from these kids.”

There were also several local representatives at the fair like the Globe Police Department, Globe Fire Department, and Gila Community College.

“I think the fair was a great opportunity for students to get a feel for their futures. Many students commented that the fair opened their eyes to the opportunities that were out there,” said Glinski. “The plan is to continue to have these types of events in the future.” Glinski also noted that the Southern Gila County College Preparatory Academy is committed to providing students with options for continuing their education.